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With the definition '' GONDRAND MASSACRE

'Gondrand massacre' refers to the massacre occurred near the Ethiopian locality of Mai Lahlà at dawn on February 13, 1936 during the war] of Ethiopia, when almost all the Italian workers of a road construction site were killed as a result of an operation of guerrilla by Ethiopian soldiers under the orders of Ras Immirù.

The massacre occurred at the same time as the Battle of Amba Aradam, fought from 10 to 19 February at about 200 km south of Mai Lahlà.

The excuse ==

In the locality Utok Emni at Mai Lahlà, located in the Ethiopian territory in the immediate vicinity of the border with Eritrea, the "National Transport Company Gondrand" was working on the construction of colonial roads during the war of Ethiopia: at the village of Daro Taclè it had placed its yard n.1, engaged in the widening of the road between Asmara and Adua. The construction site housed just under a hundred Italian workers headed by the engineer Cesare Rocca, accompanied by his wife Lydia Maffioli and the engineer Roberto Colloredo Mels. Although in the area there were garrisons of Italian troops, the area of ​​the building site was not visible from these compounds.

In the night between 12 and 13 February 1936 a band composed of 100 men (according to other sources 600 ) warriors of ras Immiru, under the command of Fitaurari Chenfè, attacked the construction site conquering it after a short resistance.

"I gave myself to the "fitautari" Tesfai the order to attack the Mai Lahlà field. I believed it and still consider it a legitimate act of war, since the workers were in the area of ​​operations and were armed with muskets. In fact they defended themselves fiercely, inflicting harsh losses on us. What our populations certainly could not do, when they were attacked and decimated by fascist aviation Ras Immirù"

The yard was equipped with about 15 muskets as a defense weapon, but -although the workers had also used the work tools as shovels as defense tools- they all were overwhelmed by the surprise attack of the Ethiopians; almost all the workers present that night, sixty eight Italians and seventeen Eritreans, were killed within a couple of hours, probably in order to avoid her capture and consequent rape & painful torture.

Italian Retaliation==

Immediately after the massacre, the Italian soldiers begin a hard reprisal against the population of the area surrounding Mai Lahlà.